The Video Diaries
by IceCreamAndPizza
Summary: When they were young, Ash, Misty and Brock decided to each make a video diary of their travels together. 10 years later, they find themselves back at Ash's house reliving the memories and learning things they never knew about each other. Brock's POV.
1. Back Together Again

When you think about it, ten years is a lot of time. It's a whole decade in your life filled with change. As I sat in the chair I had sat on many times before, it was hard for me to believe that ten years had really gone by. Where did all that time go?Just by looking at the two people on the couch next to me, I knew right away that so much had changed.

They had grown up. Ash having traded the blue jacket and green gloves he once wore as a kid for a red hoodie and khaki shorts. His once unruly black hair that he always kept under a cap had been cut shorter, no longer sticking out on the sides, the ends reaching his ears and his bangs falling to the side. It now looked more wavy than spiky. Sitting on top, facing backwards, was yet another cap, this one tan color. The electric mouse that had been by his side since day one showed signs of aging itself, little strands of gray fur now mixed in with its yellow ones.

Next to him was a much older Misty who, instead of her yellow tank top, red suspenders and short shorts combo, now sported an orange tank top with ruffles on the bottom and white shorts. For Misty, this was quite girly looking. Her still fiery, red hair was much longer now, falling in layers to just above her elbow. On her feet she wore some familiar red shoes, showing that tomboy Misty was still in there somewhere.

Since it had been so long since we had seen each other, when Ash and Misty first arrived, there had been a moment of silence as they both observed the changes in the other. Ash, finally noticing girls in a new light, gwaked at Misty, his mouth hanging open like a Magikarp. Even Misty herself was quiet for once, her eyes widening at the changes she saw in her once immature traveling companion. It was me who had to snap them out of their trances, both of them blushing at the realization of what they had been doing.

It wasn't just their looks that had changed, but also their personalities, accomplishments and career choices. As we filed into Ash's family room, I couldn't help but wonder if, when this was all over, I would even be able to recognize the two best friends I hadn't seen in almost 5 years. We didn't take time to catch up, quickly heading to watch the DVDs since after we were done watching them, we would have the whole night to catch up.

"Who wants to go first?" I asked my two friends who were sitting on the couch, blank stares on their face. I could tell they were both nervous about whatever was on their DVD, or maybe, it was nerves from what might be on the other's DVD. If this was seven years ago, they would probably be fighting over who got to go first, shoving and pushing each other out of the way. This wasn't the case, though. Neither one of them dared move first, instead eyeing each other. "If you two can't decide then we'll have to pull names out of a hat."

"How about you go first?" Misty suggested, finally turning her eyes away from Ash to look at me. "This was your idea after all."

I guess she was right. It had been my idea to make these DVDs ten years ago. When we had started traveling together as a group, I suggested that they each obtain a video camera and film whatever they wanted about our travels so that when we were all twenty we could reunite and watch them.

At first they had thought the idea to be rather dumb, Misty claiming that once Ash gave her a bike she would be gone, while Ash claimed he just didn't have the time. Since I had been the only one with a camera, I had decided to videotape stuff anyway. After a while, they had started asking to borrow my video camera, ultimately ending up fighting over it. That's when I suggested to Misty's sisters and Ash's mom that maybe that would be a good Christmas gift for them.

When we had found out that our group would be torn apart, we made a list of questions that each person would have to film themselves answering. And on the night before Misty, Ash and I parted ways, that's what we each went of to a separate room to do. As part of our video agreement, we would include this Q&A into the final video diary we created. Since it was most likely that our journey together was ending there, we decided that if they wanted, one could film their adventures, but they didn't have to. This diary was supposed to be of the adventures of Ash, Misty and Brock. It was meant for us only, so having clips of the adventures without everyone just felt odd. (At least, I thought it did)

Having reached the date we agreed on years ago, I had called Ash and Misty to schedule a day when we would all meet at Ash's house and watch the videos we had created. At first, Misty and Ash had trouble remembering what I was talking about, but I had quickly jogged their memories. Since we all needed time to make the videos-or find the video camera in Ash's case-we agreed that we would meet at Ash's house in exactly one week. Since we had collected more footage than we needed over the years, we had agreed to shorten them to three things: Three favorite memories, two funny clips, and the Q&A we had filmed before we went our separate ways.

Since I knew that neither of them would be volunteering anytime soon, I walked over to the T.V. and placed my DVD into the player. Pushing play, I returned to my seat and watched as the screen went from a black screen with lines to the title screen I had created that had a song playing in the background. As the song faded away, it was replaced with a scene of our campsite.


	2. Brock's Video

**As an add on to the story, here the song Brock chose to play during his video.**

http : / www . youtube . com/watch?v=RuV2agQPgps (I had to put spaces so that I could put the whole link)**  
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"_Hi everyone, my name is Brock Slate and this is our little campsite. It's not much, but it's what we call home when we're on the road. If you look at the position of the sleeping bags, you will notice that my two traveling companions have placed their sleeping bags rather close to each other while mine is on the opposite side of our campfire. In case you are wondering, they are exactly five inches apart. In the beginning of our journey-we've been traveling for about six months now- they were at opposite ends. Where are my two traveling companions you may ask? I sent them off to collect firewood so that I could film. I better go because they'll be back soon." _

As the screen went black again, and the music came back in, I glanced at my two friends who both had a tint of red on their cheeks. I doubt they had even noticed that. Turning back to the screen, I watched the next scene.

"_This is Ash Ketchum everyone. Say hi Ash." _

"_Uh...aren't I just saying hi to an older version of myself?" he asked, a puzzled look on his face. _

"_How do you know I'm not going to show this to anyone else?" I teased. _

"_Because if I ever find out you did, you'll be dead," Misty threatened, popping her face into the shot. She had been walking next to Ash. _

"_Hey!" I yelled at her. "This is Ash's interview, not yours. You'll be next. So, just hold your Ponyta's." _

_She just grumbled a "fine" from off screen, as she stopped ahead of us, already bored with what was going on. _

"_So, Ash, say hi," I reminded him. _

"_Hi older Ash!" he waved enthusiastically at the camera. "How are you doing? Oh...wait, you can't answer that...um...yeah...I hope you are doing well." He scratched the back of his head, not really sure what to say next. _

"_You're so dumb Ash," Misty scoffed from off screen again. I guess she just couldn't keep her comments to herself. _

"_I am not!" he turned around and yelled at her. Although, it looked like he was yelling at the camera because she was in front of us, me walking backward as I filmed him. _

"_Guys! Please let me finish this interview. When I'm done you can argue all you want," I begged them. _

"_Fine!" they both huffed. _

"_Thanks," I sighed. "Now Ash, is there anything you want to tell your older self?" _

"_Like what? I just said hi." _

"_Like, any goals you hoped you have achieved by then, or any questions you have about the future," I explained to him. If I had known it would be this hard to interview Ash, I would have started with Misty instead. Maybe, at least she would understand what I was trying to do. _

"_Oh, okay," he replied as if suddenly understanding. "I have three things that I hope you have done: Become the greatest Pokemon master, kick Gary's butt in everything, and have a restaurant named after you." _

"_You forgot something, Ash," Misty told him. _

"_What's that? I have Pokemon Master...Gary-"_

"_You better have paid me back for my bike," she reminded him. _

"_WHAT?" Ash narrowed his eyes and crossed his arms, pouting at her. "No one cares about your dumb bike, Misty." _

"_Well I do!" she yelled back. "And if you haven't paid me back for it by the time we watch these, you will be very sorry." At this, she also narrowed her eyes glaring at him as if she was challenging him to continue arguing with her. It worked. _

_As they started arguing about her bike for the billionth time, I just sighed in defeat, telling Ash that we would finish his interview later. Intent on winning his argument with Misty, though, I don't think he heard me. _

Again, the scene began changing, but was suddenly stopped when the pause button appeared on the screen. Looking over at the couch, I saw that Misty had the remote in her hand and a look that could kill aimed at Ash. I had a feeling I knew where this conversation was headed.

"So Ash," she smirked, leaning closer to him, the remote held firmly in her hand. "Care to share why I still don't have my bike?" She smiled at him with a devilish grin, waiting for his response. I just hopped that they didn't spend the whole time we had together arguing.

"You got your bike back, Misty," he told her. "Remember? The Nurse Joy fixed it for you. I owe you nothing."

This was clearly not the answer she was looking for, her eyes narrowing down at him as her free hand flew forward and gripped the shirt Ash was wearing, pulling his face closer to hers. "You owe me a bike, Ketchum." As I observed the scene before me, I couldn't help but think that, maybe, even after ten years, Ash and Misty had never really changed at all. "And I know for a fact that you have the money to afford one."

Although Ash had yet to become the Pokemon Master, he had been offered a position as a member of the elite four. And as Misty and I both knew, that was a job that paid well.

After ten years of hearing them arguing about that darn bike, I heard Ash say the something I thought I would never live to hear him say. "Fine. After this I'll go buy you a new bike. You happy?"

"Very," she smiled, loosening her grip and letting the fabric of Ash's shirt slip through her hands as he fell back into the sofa. Turning back to the T.V., she hit play again.

"_Hello all! I would like to introduce you to one of the greatest girls I have ever met," I had zoomed the camera in on the Nurse Joy of Vermilion City's face. _

"_Uh..." _

"_You're not like the other Joys. You're much more beautiful and kinder than they are. Would you go out with me? I know we're meant to be together, and I assure you that if you got out with me, you'll never find a more suitable boyfriend."_

_"I'm quite busy," Nurse Joy replied. _

"_Please. I promise you won't regret it," I begged her. "I need you in my life, Nurse Joy. You're the only one who-Ow! Ow! Ow!" _

"_Come on lover boy," Misty sighed, pulling my ear as she dragged me away, the camera now tilted on its side. "I'm so sorry about that. Brock! Why do you have to be so embarrassing?" _

As the scene quickly faded, I saw that Ash and Misty had started giggling a bit. We had all known about my pursuits after Nurse Joy, Officer Jenny, and any pretty girl. Since I had watched this video many times while I was editing it, I started laughing knowing the scene that would be next. I hadn't planned on adding it to the video, but then after watching it, I couldn't help not putting it in there.

"_I would like you to meet Ms. Delia Ketchum. This is Ash's mom and one of the best cooks-aside from myself, of course- that I have ever met." _

"_Oh, Brock, please," Ms. Ketchum laughed nervously. "You're embarrassing me." _

"_No need to be embarrassed, Mrs. Ketchum. I'm just interviewing you for my video diary," I explained to her. But then I turned the camera around so that you could see my face. "Ash, for an understanding of why I'm here, after an unfortunate incident, I came back to your house waiting for you and Misty to return from the Orange Islands. While I was here, I thought I would interview your mom." _

_Flipping the camera back on Ms. Ketchum, I zoomed out a bit so I could get more of the background behind her. "They should be back tomorrow," Ms. Ketchum told me. Then, clasping her hands together, she added in a motherly voice. "I just miss my little Ashey so much. It's always nice when he decides to come home." _

"_So, Ms, Ketchum," I continued on before she started weeping about missing her Ashy. "Anything you want to tell the future Ash, Misty or me? We're making a video diary that we are going to watch when we are all twenty." _

"_Ooo. That's so sweet," she awed. Putting her hand on her chin, she glanced down at the floor while she thought of what to say. Suddenly she looked back up and stared at me. "Okay, I got something. I'm ready." _

"_Uh, the camera is already on." _

"_Oh, whoops," she laughed. "Well in that case, I do have a few things. For starters, Ash I hope that you are still changing your you-know-what's every day-" _

The much older Ash turned a beat red, hiding his face under his cap while Misty laughed beside him.

"_-I hope that you have found what makes you happiest, even if it may be something different from what you originally thought. Lastly, I want grandkids." _

"_Ms, Ketchum, you do realize that Ash will only be 20. Don't you think that might be too young?" _

"_Oh, I don't mean now. I mean in the future," she clarified. "Ash I better not have grandkids when you watch this video!" She had started yelling in her mother voice, pointing at the camera, lecturing the much older Ash that would be watching this. Having said what she needed to say, she returned to her cherry self, moving right along. "Misty, dear. I want you to know that no matter what, you are always welcome her. You have always been like a daughter to me, and I hope that you have also found what makes you the happiest. I want to thank you for everything you have done for Ash. You have always been there for him and kept him safe for me. I have always appreciated it. And Brock, I hope you find a nice girl to marry. I'm sure she's out there somewhere." _

"_Uh, thanks Ms. Ketchum," I groaned. "So, Ms. Ketchum, do you think that Ash and Misty will be together by the time they watch this video?" _

_This caused her to smile, grinning from ear to ear. "One can only hope, Brock. I would love a little red-head running around my house."_

"_Thanks Mrs. Ketchum. That about does it," I thanked her before turning off the camera. _

For once, I decided not to look at Ash and Misty, afraid that if I met their eyes, I would be sealing my death. Instead, I just continued watching the video.

_ "What are you doing, Misty?" I asked her. _

_ When I had woken up because I couldn't sleep, I had seen Misty sitting on a rock, deep in thought. She had come to visit us in Hoenn since her sisters had finally given her a break. I tried to be quiet when I got up, hoping not to disturb her. I don't think it mattered, though, because she was so deep in thought that she didn't hear me. As I followed her eyes to see what she was staring at, I saw that she was staring intently at a certain black-haired trainer. _

_ "Huh?" she replied, quickly glancing at me. _

_ "I asked what are you doing?" I repeated for her. On the flip side, it was quite obvious what she was doing._

_ "Nothing," she quickly replied, blushing a bit. "And turn the camera off." _

_ As I looked at her blushing face, I thought of a song I heard on a movie my little sisters had always loved to watch. I had always considered myself a performer, so as I crept closer to her with the camera, I started singing the song I had heard many times before. _

_ "Who you think you're kidding? He's the earth and heaven to you. Try to keep it hidden, honey I can see right through you. Girl you can't conceal it. I know how you're feeling. Who you're thinking of." _

_ "What are you doing?" she snapped. "You're going to wake everyone up!" _

_ "Face it like a grown up. When you gonna own up that you got, got, got it bad?" _

_ "Got what bad, Brock?" she asked. "I have no idea what you are talking about. And stop singing. You're giving me a headache._

_ "Give up, give in. Check the grid you're in love," I sang some more. _

_ Finally realizing what I was hinting at, her eyes got wide and she balled her hands into a fist. "I am not in love!" she shouted. "Get off my case!" _

_ "It's okay, you're in love," I assured her. _

_ "I'm not in love!" she yelled at the top of her lungs. _

_ "What are you yelling about, Misty?" a groggy Ash asked as he rubbed his eyes. _

_ "Nothing. Go back to bed, Ash," she ordered him. "Brock's just being annoying." _

* * *

><p><em> "Brock, I want the camera! It's my turn," my little siblings whined as they jumped all over me, trying to get the camera. The screen was shaking as my siblings pulled on me from each side. "Brock!"<em>

_ "Nobody gets the camera!" I shouted, lifting it up over my head so they couldn't get it. "Now if you want to be a part of this film, you all have to sit down." _

_ Almost immediately, the yanking stopped and they all seated themselves on the floor in front of me. Before I would start letting them talk, I turned the camera on myself. "Hey Ash and Misty! Ash, while you've been traveling around Unova and Misty, while you've been running the gym, I've been working on getting my breeder's license as well as helping out with my siblings. They all miss you guys a lot and wanted to say hello." Turning the camera back on them, I started with the oldest zooming in on each of their faces when they spoke. _

_ "Hi Ash and Misty! How are you doing? I hope you are doing well!" Forrest waved._

_ "How's Pikachu?" Salvador asked. _

_ "Misty, have you caught any new water pokemon? I just love them!" Yolanda asked, her eyes shinning at the thought of water pokemon. _

"_How's Togepi?" Tommy asked. _

_ "Misty doesn't have Togepi, you dummy," Cindy yelled at him. _

_ "Oh," Tommy replied. "Then I hope you are doing well." _

_ "I hope you are the Pokemon Master!" Suzie said. _

_ "Do you still like to eat food, Ash?" Timmy asked. _

_ "Food?" Billy asked. "I like food! Just like you, Ash!" _

_ "I like Brock's rice balls!" Tilly cheered. _

_ "So they got a little off track. Regardless they all miss you guys and would love for you to stop by sometimes. Bye from Pewter!" _

At this point Misty was giggling while Ash just chuckled and shook his head. "Ha ha ha! Ash, do you still like to eat food? That's great. Your siblings are hilarious, Brock."

Finally, as the video was coming to a close, it was time for the Q&A session. When I was making the video, I hadn't watched the part with the questions, instead just sticking it in the video as it was. Since it had been so long since I recorded this, I honestly didn't remember all the questions we all agreed to answer.

_Question 1: What's your dream career?_

"_Well, I would say that if I could be anything, I would ultimately be a Pokemon breeder. I traveled with you guys so that I could get the opportunity to see Pokemon outside of Pewter. I have my own Pokemon food that yours all love, so I think I might actually be able to achieve that dream. If I can't, then I would always be happy with being a dad or something. _

_Question 2: What's your favorite memory?_

"_Hm...tough question. There are definitely a lot of them because we've been traveling for so long. But, if I had to pick one, I would say it would be when I got to carry Suzie's Vulpix around. It was great meeting her, too, but I loved taking care of that Vulpix. It was rather heartbreaking for me when I had to give it back._

_Question 3: What would you say your role in the group is? _

"_Ha ha, I came up with this question. I think my role in the group is not limited to just one thing, but in fact three. For starters, I am more of the older brother who has guided you guys and helped you out when you needed it. Secondly, I am the cook because without me-no offense guys-you would starve. And finally, I'm the peacekeeper of the group. When you guys start arguing, it's me who has to break it up, and when you have battles, it's me who has to be the referee. I don't mind any of those roles, but I wish you two would have argued less." _

_Question 4: Who's your crush? (And yes, Brock, you only can pick one)_

"_Man, you guys no me well. I don't think I can pick. This is way to hard. There's Nurse Joy, but than there's Officer Jenny, and than the maiden, and then Suzie and than Erika, and...oh! Right, one...just one... Hmm...I guess if I had to pick, I would pick Suzie. Happy guys?" _

_Question 5: Plan on having a family? If so, what do you think they'll be like? _

"_Of course I do. I just have to find that special someone. That's the only thing I have to worry about for now, but hopefully, by the time we all read this, I will maybe be close to that. I want to have a couple kids, but not as many as my parents. I still think they might have gone a little overboard. When I do have kids, though, I want to be the best dad I can for them. I hope they have charming looks like me, and a knack for cooking._

_Question 6: What is the one thing that's always bothered you?_

"_Let's see, the one thing that's always bothered me is that sometimes I fell under appreciated. I know that you guys do appreciate what I do, but sometimes I wish you two would actually thank me every now and then instead of just expecting me to do whatever it is. I mean, who knows? I may not always be around to help you guys or stop you from killing each other. You need to learn how to take care of yourselves and not always depend on me. While, I have always enjoyed watching over you two, I need my own life sometimes, too. Oh, and Misty, I really don't like when you pull me away from beautiful girls."_

_Question 7: Whom would you consider your best friend?_

"_I don't know. I've been really close to you guys, but sometimes I feel like I'm the third wheel in the Ash and Misty adventure. Don't get me wrong, I love you guys and you two are like my little brother and sister, but if I had to pick, I would say that I've always considered my brother Forrest my best friend. We've always been close because of age, and I helped him take over the gym, so it just seems right." _

_Question 8: What's one regret you have in life? _

"_One regret I have in life is that I stayed with Professor Ivy and missed out on traveling with you guys in the Orange Island. I even missed you saving the world, Ash. And, based on what Tracy told me, I have a feeling this Melody girl and l were on the thinking the same thing... you know what I mean? By the way, do you think she'd go for me?" _

_Question 9: If you only had 24 hours to live, what would you do? (Ash, you ARE NOT going to die in 24 hours, so stop freaking out you dense idiot.)_

"_If I had 24 hours to live, I would spend it with my family and as many beautiful girls as I could. End of story, next question, please." _

_Question 10: What's one thing you've always wanted to know? _

"_One thing I've always wanted to know is how Team Rocket always paid for those machines they used to steal Pikachu. I just didn't make sense because they always complained about being poor and living on noodles." _

As the music finished off the video, I looked at my two friends, debating which one of them would offer to go next. When I suggested that one of them pick, they both ignored me and told the other to go first. Trying to move on with this viewing process, I told them each to pick a number between one and ten, closest one wins. With the number 4 in mind, I listened as Ash picked 2 and Misty picked 7, giving Ash the victory. Stomping over to the T.V., sour from her defeat, Misty jammed her DVD into the player and sat back on the couch, crossing her arms with a peeved look on her face.


	3. Misty's Video

Songs for Misty's video (I DO NOT OWN ANY OF THEM!):

1. http : / www . youtube . com /watch?v=Ya5ICVKUERg (For the first paragraph where she is talking. Although, based on the description, I'm sure you can guess what the song is.)

2. http : / www . youtube . com /watch?v=rjFaenf1T-Y (Until the very end)

3. http : / www . youtube . com /watch?v=6Yj0Wzg86H8 (The very end)

We all sat waiting for Misty to push play-since she had the remote-anticipating what might be on her video. Since I hadn't seen her in a while, and I remembered the approach she took to her filming, I was a little worried.

Her video started with that classical music they always played when there was a tranquil moment-I think the song was called morning or something-as she sat on a patch of grass, a fishing pole in her hand. As we watched the scene, you could hear Misty's voice in the background explaining what was happening.

"_This was my life before I went on my journey. I spent my time fishing for water pokemon while I rode my bike up and down the shore, enjoying the ocean breeze. I admit that things weren't as great as they may appear, having to live with three older sisters who reminded me everyday how much more beautiful they were than me. That's when I decided that I wasn't going to put up with their crap anymore and left the gym, stating I wouldn't come back until I became a Water Pokemon Master. You know how Pocahontas sings that song about looking forward to what's, just beyond the river bend? Yeah, well, unlike her, what was just around the river bend for me was not what I was looking for. My day was going great, until HE showed up, somehow getting himself attached to my fishing line." _

_A picture of Ash from who knows where interrupted the once serene moment of Misty fishing. Underneath it was a caption that read, "Bike Wrecker" in big, bold letters. Well, I guess that sums up how she felt. _

"_Yep," she told us, as if she answering the question of was he really a bike wrecker? "Thanks to this idiot's lack of a brain, my bike was destroyed and left on the side of the road for me to find. How nice of him, right? I found him in the Viridian City Pokemon Center waiting as his Pikachu received some intensive care. When he left, I vowed to him that I would follow him until he paid me back for the bike he had wrecked. And ever since then, I had followed him around until the day I had to leave." _

Ash, clearly ticked off from being called a bike wrecker for the billionth time, glared at Misty, waiting for her to say something to him in the from of an apology. She didn't, though, completely ignoring his glances, probably because she had expected them. She just stared ahead and watched as her voice continued telling the story of her take on our adventure. I guess, unlike me, Misty had decided to do this in a story format. I had just complied some of my favorite clips and thrown them together, trying to create some kind of order.

"_Believe it or not, the bike wrecker has a name. He became one my traveling companions over time-or rather, I became his. Anyways, his name is Ash Ketchum. Let me take this time to remind you of just who exactly this boy is-or possibly used to be."_

"_This is Ash in his natural habitat," a younger version of Misty explained as she zoomed in a shot of Ash sitting at a table inhaling his food. "He likes to eat food more than I think he likes to do anything else in the world. Sometimes, I think even more than Pokemon Training. If he didn't eat so much, than he would have had enough money to pay be back by now and I wouldn't be sitting here filming him shoveling down his food." _

_The camera zoomed out as Misty walked over to the table where Ash was sitting, sliding into the seat across from him. He didn't even acknowledge her presence as he just continued eating. Next to him sat Pikachu who was enjoying a bottle of ketchup. _

"_This is Pikachu," Misty explained, turning the camera on the electric mouse. "Pikachu was Ash's first Pokemon and the main reason I have no bike." _

_At this, Pikachu sweated, sighing a, "Chu."_

"_Don't worry, Pikachu. I don't blame you for my bike being ruined. You were just trying to protect your idiotic trainer who got you there in the first place." _

"_Hey!" Ash yelled, finally reacting to her being there. "That's not true." _

_Misty turned the camera on her before she said, "Ash likes to think he's right, but he's usually wrong." _

"_Misty!" Ash whined. Since the camera was still focused on her, you could see her face turn into that annoyed look that, after much observation over the years, was usually meant for Ash. "I told you I would pay you back when I got the money." _

"_Really, Ash?" she questioned him, sarcasm in her voice. "Because I'm pretty sure it's been almost six months and I STILL have no bike. If you didn't eat so much, you could have paid me back. But nooooo. You had to go and stuff your mouth like a pig every time." _

"_I'm not a pig!" he argued back. At this, Misty moved the camera from Ash's face to the stack of plates that had been discarded beside him. _

"_Let's count, shall we," she suggested as her finger entered the shot. "There's one plate, and oh, look! There's another one stacked under it. And under that there's a third. Oh, wait, folks, there's more. It appears as if there's a fourth AND a fifth plate. I rest my case." _

"_You're mean," Ash grumbled. "What are you filming me for anyway? I thought you hated me?" _

"_I do," she confirmed. "But I needed something to do, so I thought I would interview you so I could show everyone the big dense idiot I had to travel with." _

"_Wow, Misty," Ash snapped, rolling his eyes. "That's a real nice way to ask someone for an interview." _

"_Whatever," she barked. "Just do it." _

"_Fine. But only because you will keep bothering me about it." _

"_So Ash," Misty began, sounding like a reporter. "Tell everyone what it's like being an dense idiot. Sending a bug to fight a bird?" _

"_I'm not an idiot!" he shot back. "And stop insulting me! Is that the point of this interview?"_

"_No," she replied. "Fine. Next question. What's it like having no sense of direction? I heard you have trouble finding yourself in a mirror sometimes." _

"_Misty!" Ash yelled, throwing his hands up into the air. "Forget this! I quit. Come on Pikachu." Ash stood up and left the table. _

"_Hey!" Misty called after him. "Don't leave me with the check, you jerk! I can't afford all this!" He just ignored her and she turned the camera back on herself. "See? He's nothing but a big jerk that eats non-stop. I can't wait until I get out of here."_

From his spot on the couch, I could see that Ash actually looked a little sad because of what he just watched. I knew him and Misty had grown close over the years, so I bet the last thing he wanted to see what her insulting him and humiliating him. I really hope she had a point to this. The scene quickly faded as once again, Misty's voice could be heard explaining what we were going to see next.

"_Next, I want you to meet Brock, who was the gym leader from Pewter City. After Ash defeated him-god only knows how- in a gym battle, he decided that he was going to travel with us. (No offense Brock, I have no idea why) Ironically, though, he's the one who's probably been with Ash the longest-except for Pikachu, of course. When I left, Brock continued on with Ash in Hoenn and Sinnoh, until he finally left when Ash traveled to Unova. Anyways, I'm getting off track, so here's Brock. _

"_Hi Brock! Can I interview you for my video diary thing?"_

"_Sure, Misty. I'm really glad you and Ash have started to film stuff. It helps me catch things I don't always get to see." _

"_Yeah yeah," Misty scoffed. "Just let me interview you before Ash decides he wants to go battle the gym leader." _

"_Where is he anyway?" I asked. _

"_He said something about calling home," she replied. "Now you're wasting time." _

"_Oh, sorry," I apologized. "I'm ready." _

"_Okay, everyone. This is Brock. He's an aspiring Pokemon Breeder who can't pick up a single girl. He has to be dragged away by yours truly whenever he tries to hit on them. So, if for some reason this video is seen by anyone else-and I will kill you Brock if it is-I am sorry to any girl who was ever hit on by Brock." _

"_What kind of interview is this?" I asked her. "You're just insulting me." _

"_No I'm not. I'm stating the facts. Now the first question," she said, not missing a beat. "What's it like being the oldest of nine siblings?" _

"_Uh, it's tough sometimes. Especially when I had to take care of them all by myself. In the end, though, I wouldn't trade it for the world." _

"_Aww, how sweet," she cooed. "Question two. What is your opinion on Ash? Do you think he will actually learn how to properly battle?" _

"_Ash is a good trainer, Misty. You're way to hard on him sometimes," I scolded her. "He tries really hard, and when he fails, you always are there to remind him." _

"_But it's not my fault he makes dumb choices," she argued back. _

"_You know? For someone who is supposed to like him, you aren't doing a very good job of getting him to like you back," I told her. _

"_WHAT DID YOU SAY?" she roared over the scene. At this point in time, she had whacked me with that mallet of hers, knocking me unconscious. "You're crazy." _

_She turned the camera off, probably looking for someone else to insult via an interview. _

I would be lying if I said the next scene shocked me.

"_So, it's been almost a whole year and a half since I started traveling with Ash and I'm still here. I know this is a big jump from when my previous clips have taken place, but I never really had time to film as much as Brock did. It's okay, though. I don't mind. Anyways, right now Ash and I are traveling with a guy named Tracy in the Orange Islands. Brock decided that he wanted to stay back and help a professor named Ivy. I kind of wish he wouldn't have left because I would be lying if I said I didn't mind Tracy. He's just so annoying and he's obsessed with Professor Oak. Also, all he does is sketch things. I mean, they're great picture, but there has to be something else he could do. Oh well."_

"_Today, we're riding on Lapras on our way to Trovita Island, so I really hope I don't drop this camera in the ocean. Well, it looks like we're almost here...OH MY GOD! There's a girl drowning. Ash, take the camera." _

"_What?" a surprised Ash asked as the camera was shoved into his hand. "Hey, Misty! Come back!" You could hear a splash in the background as I assumed Misty had dived into the ocean to rescue said drowning girl._

_Interestingly, Ash continued videotaping as Misty swam over to the girl and rescued her from the whirlpools. As they reached the shore, you could see a group of people yelling to the little girl. When Misty reached the shore, a boy with red hair raced to her, grabbing the girl in his arms. Since Ash was too far away, you couldn't really hear what they were saying, but before he got any closer, he shut off the camera. _

I looked over at Misty to see if I could see any indication on her face of what was the meaning behind the clip being in her video. She was biting her lip, something she did when she was nervous, pulling her knees close to her body. Hmm, I wonder why she was so nervous?

_The next scene featured just Misty, who appeared to be sitting in a room. Just like she was now, she was biting her lip, glancing everywhere but at the camera. What I didn't understand was what was making her act this way. There was obviously something bothering her. Finally gaining the courage to look at the camera, she started speaking. _

"_So, I just met Rudy for dinner- a thank you for saving his little sister. He showed me his gym with all the different Pokemon he had. We even danced, which was a little weird at first, but than it actually became kind of fun. Anyways, that's not what I'm here to talk about. I didn't know what to do, so I decided that I would just talk it out in front of a camera. There isn't anyone I can really talk to about this because Tracy wouldn't understand and Ash is just not an option right now So, while I was at Rudy's house, he asked me to stay with him. Not just for a few days or months, but for forever. I have to tell him what I have decided in the morning, but I don't know what to do. If this had been last year than, without any hesitation, my answer would be yes. Now, though, believe it or not, things are different. I have actually grown to enjoy Ash's company, and I really don't care as much about the bike as I did before. I actually considered him one of my friends. We've had a lot of adventures together and it just feels weird to suddenly go and leave all that. If Brock were here, he would know what to do, but he left because he jumped at the opportunity he was given. Me on the other hand, I don't know what to do. It might be in my best interest to leave because Ash doesn't really want me around, and this IS his journey. I kind of just invited myself. So, maybe, I need to do something for myself and let him go on his own way. It would be a kind of like a payment for all the stuff I had put him through. With me gone, he wouldn't have someone constantly insulting him. I don't think he would really care. I mean, he let his Pokemon go when he felt it was in their best interest, so why am I any different?"_

_She paused for a few moments as if she was thinking of what to say next. As she was about to open her mouth, though, someone paused the DVD. _

I knew it had to be Ash or Misty because I didn't have the remote. Just as I suspected, when I looked over at the couch, Ash had the remote in his shaking hand. I could only see the side of his face, but he was staring at Misty. Not a word was said between either of them, the tension building in the room. Grabbing the remote from Ash's shaking hand, Misty pushed play again, avoiding having to talk to him.

"_Well, hopefully tomorrow I'll be able to make my decision. I have to let him know after Ash's match, so I guess I have got some time. We'll see, though." _

* * *

><p>"<em>Hey, Brock! I think that's what Ash and Misty said your name was. Anyways, my name is Melody. From what Tracey's told me, you and I would get along pretty well. I stole Ash's camera while he had to go and be dumb, trying to save the world in the middle of a big storm. According to Misty, this is her life everyday. I guess that's just something she'll have to get used to when they're married. Don't tell her I said that, or she'll kill me. Anyways, I also took the camera so I could show this dense numbskull how much his little friend cares about him." She directed the camera up into the sky to show a giant bird-like Pokemon that had Ash on his back. "As you can see, Ash is riding on Lugia's back as some very peeved Pokemon are fighting around him. While I'm sure he'll be fine, Misty here is biting her lip and refusing to avert her eyes anywhere else." <em>

The DVD paused again, and Misty suddenly stood up. "I-I-" she stuttered, a look of pain on her face one would wear when they had to relive something they never wanted to think about again. "I can't watch this part. It hurts too much. I had to put it in here, though."

I thought I actually saw what was the beginning of tears on her face, but she left before I could get a closer look, pressing play again. Ash and I both directed our attention back to the screen, puzzled by what could make Misty of all people this upset for her to get up and leave.

_Just then, black rings shot out from nowhere and caught Lugia between them. The Pokemon struggled to break free, a giant beam of light shoot from its mouth as the black rings fell off. It must have been too much for the Pokemon, though, because the next thing I saw was it plummeting into the ocean below it. What caught my attention next wasn't Lugia falling into the ocean, but Ash and Pikachu who had hovered in the air for a few seconds before crashing into the ocean as well. _

"_ASH!" Misty screamed from somewhere off camera while everyone around her just gasped in shock. Regaining her composure, she quickly turned around. "We have to save him!" _

"_But Misty," Melody protested, "it's way to dangerous. The water's probably freezing." _

_Misty glanced over her shoulder, looking at the roaring waves. Turning back to Melody, she shook her head. "No. He's my best friend, Melody. I have to save him, before...before...I just have to." _

_Grabbing a rope out of Ash's backpack that was sitting near them, Misty tied it around herself, handing the other end to Tracey, who handed the camera off to Melody. With one swift movement, Misty dove into the water and started swimming straight ahead. _

"_I hope your happy, Ash," Melody scolded from the camera, but in a softer voice, she added, "Please let them be okay."_

_For a while all we saw was the roaring waves and Misty's head popping up every now and then between them. It felt like hours went by on the video as I waited in anticipation for her to come back. Obviously, I knew that Ash was okay since he was sitting here next to me, but I was still on the edge of my seat. _

"_I think she found him," Tracey yelled as he began pulling the rope, bringing Misty back to the shore. _

_As he pulled, I saw her get closer and closer, a passed out Ash in her arms, and a very concerned Pikachu on her shoulder. When she reached the shore, Tracey dropped the rope and ran over to drag Ash onto the shore while Misty regained her breath. She didn't waste much time, though, instantly standing back up and running over to Ash's body. _

_She kneeled in front of him and started shaking him. "Wake up, Ash," she cried, putting all her strength into shoving in. "Please, wake up." Melody had zoomed in a bit, allowing us to see the tears that had started dripping down Misty's face and onto Ash's jacket. At this time, Melody shut off the camera. _

As if she had timed exactly how long the clip was, she walked back into the room as the screen turned black. She didn't say anything nor did she look at us as she sat back on the couch.

"Melody didn't know she had my camera. She thought it was Ash's," was all she said before the scene changed again.

"_Here were are once again in the woods, camping out because Ash got us lost. Then again, I probably shouldn't have let him lead us in that shortcut he claimed to have known. I mean, how would he actually know about a shortcut when he had never traveled on these roads before? I think some of his idiocy had rubbed off on me. I guess that's what I get for traveling with him for son long. Anyways, like I said, we're somewhere in the middle of Johto and after a nice meal, I thought I would give you a little update on how everyone is doing." _

"_Say, hi Ash," Misty instructed, turning it to an unsuspecting Ash who was in the middle of grooming Pikachu. _

"_Hi," he waved. "Want to see my badges?" _

"_Same old Ash," Misty laughed, but instead of getting mad at her, Ash just laughed along with her. _

"_Say hi, Brock!" _

"_Hi, future me! I hope you found a hot girl by now," I told myself. _

_Misty just giggled. "I like how you dream," she commented, causing me to scowl at her. "But, one day, maybe." _

"_As you can see, we're a pretty tight nit group now. Kind of like a little family. If someone told me that it would be this way when I first started, I would have laughed my butt off, but now I can only smile at the great friends I have here. Although Ash is still a bit of a dense idiot at times, I have found that he is actually a caring person who's friends, family and Pokemon mean everything to him. He just needed to mature a bit. And then there's Brock who, without him, Ash and I would have killed each other by now. I'm not just talking about our arguing, but our cooking skills. Neither of us can cook, so Brock has had to feed us since day one. Throughout time, though, he's taught us a few recipes that I have actually tried every now and then. But, like I said, without him, we'd probably be dead or lost in the woods forever. So, I would like to take this time to thank him for everything. As much as I questioned his coming with us at first, I wouldn't have picked anyone else. Although, he could cut down on the girls he hit on. I think his ears are now immune to all pain. Anyways, I'm getting off track. Where was I? Oh yeah. It's weird to think that in three years, three complete strangers became three best friends. (That's a lot of threes!) This is Misty signing off for now. Until our next adventure." _

* * *

><p>"<em>Yeah, so, here I am on my last night with Ash and Brock. You know? I never thought this would happen. I always thought I would leave because I wanted to, not because my selfish sisters had forced me to. But this hadn't been the only thing I had been wrong about so far. Yeah...so, these questions. Hmm. Let's see." <em>

_Question 1: What is your dream career?_

"_Well when I started my journey, I left home vowing that I would not return until I had become a Water Pokemon Master. As you can see, I have yet to reach that title or even come close to it. I have improved in my battling, but I'm not anywhere close. I guess now, though, this is probably what I need to help me. You know? Taking over the water pokemon themed gym? So, now, I think it might be more realistic for me to say that I want to become the best gym leader I can be." _

_Question 2: What is your favorite memory?_

"_Hands down, I would say my favorite memory was when I got Togepi. Even though Ash had won the battle, Togepi still picked me. For once in my life, that little egg made me feel like someone actually wanted me around. It didn't want to go to Ash like all the other Pokemon we had ran into; it wanted me. I took care of it all by myself and it went on to great things allowing me to only be proud of what had been accomplished. I miss Togepi every day –or now it's Togetic-but I know that what we shared will live on." _

_Question 3: What would you say your role in the group was? _

"_Honestly? I don't know. I don't think I really had a role in our group like you guys did. I mean, we could joke around and say that my role was to be Ash's sparring partner, or the one who saved all the girls Brock hit on, but those aren't really important. So maybe, I don't have a role in this little group of ours. Maybe I was just an innocent bystander who had gotten dragged in." _

_Question 4: Who's your crush? (Yes, Brock, you can only pick one.) _

_My crush? Ha ha... well...I don't know if I want to answer that question. I mean, why does it even matter anyway? By the time you all read this, I'm sure it would have changed and nobody will really care anymore. It's so dumb anyway, you know? Having a crush. I mean... I guess I have one, but I don't think it's really that important." _

"_Misty! You have to tell us!" I heard my voice yell. _

"_Are you spying on me?" Misty asked, whipping her head around to look at the door.  
>"No, I just know you."<em>

"_Fine," she huffed before turning back around to face the screen. "I guess I have to unfortunately tell you all who I have a crush on. This is so dumb you know? I hope you're happy Brock. This was your stupid question anyway. You know? I bet Ash doesn't even know what a crush is. What a great question Brock. All right, fine. I'll tell you. But I'm telling you guys, it won't matter by the time you all watch this. The person...the person I have a crush on is Ash. Okay? You happy! I sure hope so. And if you're watching this Ash, I swear to God if you say anything I will beat you up and you will never live past this day." _

_Question 5: Do you plan on having a family? If so, what do you think they'll be like?_

"_I would love to have a family one day, but I don't really think about it that much. I won't lie. I would want to live in Pallet Town. It's just so nice and peaceful; it's still by the ocean, and far enough from my sisters. As far as my family, I want a daughter so that I can teach her how to beat up boys. Plus, I could raise her not to be such a selfish brat like my sisters are. She would be independent and strong like me, but she would also take on qualities of my husband, whoever that is. Oh, and I'd keep her far away from boys like Brock." _

_ Question 6: What is the one thing that always bothered you? _

_ "Aside from my sisters selfishness? That pretty much is the source of all my problems from why I left home, and then why I had to go back. Oh, and there's always Ash. He always bothered me, but I know that's not what we're talking about. If I had to pick something else, I think the one thing that always bothered me was that, no matter what, I was always going to be the scrawny runt. Whenever I would try to dress up nice, nobody would say anything about how I looked, instead making comments about how the scrawny runt had tried to actually look nice for once. I had just wished that, for once, my own friends would compliment my looks instead of random people I didn't know." _

_ Question 7: Who would you consider your best friend?_

_ "Why, Pikachu of course! That little mouse has always been there for me, helping me take care of Togepi, never battling against me, and always choosing me over his trainer. I think that Pikachu and I have a bond that's different from the one he has with Ash. I think he even likes me more than Ash sometimes. He ALWAYS stuck up for me. And, without Pikachu, I wouldn't be sitting here. So, in a weird way, I kind of have to thank him for destroying my bike." _

_ Question 8: What is your one regret in life? _

_ "My one regret in life is that I am too guarded. I never let anyone get close to me, or at least close enough to become his or her friend. I was always by myself because I never liked getting attached to people because I was afraid they would leave me. I would always break off my relationship with someone before we even got close to becoming friends. On this journey, I was pushed to open up and let myself become friends with you guys It was a great feeling, too to be able to say that I had friends. And even though we are going our separate ways tomorrow, I know that no matter what, we'll always be friends. Plus, we have even planned to meet up again when we're twenty just like the old times." _

_ Question 9: What would you do if you had 24 hours to live? (Ash, you aren't really going to die in 24 hours, so stop freaking out, you dimwit.)_

_ "Ha ha! I wonder how Ash will react to this question. When we suggested it as a question, he had panicked, thinking that he actually only had 24 hours to live. Sometimes his lack of comprehension amazed me. Oh well. If I had 24 hours to live, I would spend them on a beach surrounded by my Pokemon and hanging out with you two. There wouldn't be anyone else-except Pikachu-and we would spend the whole day just enjoying each other's company." _

_ Question 10: What is one thing you've always wanted to know?_

_ "Was it Bianca or Latias that kissed Ash?"_

"_Well, that's all ten questions, so this is the last time I'll see you guys for a while. Like any good film, Togepi and I will leave you with a parting song. We love you guys, and will miss you! Come visit!"_

Just as Misty promised, there was a song that played as her image faded away and the fake credits rolled. She stood up from the couch and walked over to the DVD player so that she could take it out. We all knew that Ash was next, and quite honestly, his was the one I had most been interested in seeing. Not because of what he had achieved over the years, but because I never saw him when he was filming. He would always ask for the camera and than disappear for a while.


	4. Ash's Video

MUSIC: Most of these are just about 30 seconds of the song. That's why there are so many.

I don't own anything.

http : / / www . youtube .com/watch?v=p09hhXbsB9c (To start his video)

http : / / www . youtube .com/watch?v=xDtqK7x5Z0c&feature=related (Just the chorus at 1:11. This is for Ash's made up song)

http : / / www . youtube .com/watch?v=aeLQ0himg24&feature=related (First clip Ash recorded. Whole song.)

http : / / www . youtube .com/watch?v=u2ELZtxQ8UI (To begin the funny clip for Brock)

http : / / www . youtube .com/watch?v=NLZwxD8kwc8 (Right after above link. All during the funny clip for Brock)

When Misty sat back down on the couch with her DVD in hand, Ash didn't budge from where he was sitting. We even waited a few seconds for him to get up and put his own DVD into the player. Just like before, though, he didn't move.

"Ash?" Misty asked in a tentative tone. "It's your turn. You're the last one to go."

He quickly looked at her, letting out a loud sigh as he stood up and walked over to the DVD player. Pulling the DVD out of the plastic case he had, he slipped it in, turned on his heel, and walked back to the couch. Since the remote was in front of Misty, she was the one who got to press play.

_ Ash's video opened with a picture of Misty's bike, while in the background, you could hear the music Team Rocket always used to play when they would perform their motto. All I could think when I saw this was: where was he going with this? _

_ "I blame this for all my misfortune. When I found it, it was in one piece, but when she found it, it was in a million. Yet, here it stands again in one piece like magic. I never had to do a thing either" _

I watched as Misty glanced at Ash, a questioning look on her face. So far, every video had Misty's notorious bike in it. It shouldn't have surprised me that Ash would mention it as well. Despite Misty's protests, I had always felt that the bike impacted Ash more than it had her.

"_So why is my opening a clip of Misty's prized bike accompanied with Team Rocket's annoying motto music? Well, for one, the bike is a metaphor. And the music, well, it relates to how I feel about the bike. Every time someone mentions the bike all I can hear is that music in my head as the evil reminder of the bike graces my ears once again. Because just like Team Rocket, that bike was there every day, a constant reminder of why my life had turned out the way it did. At one point I had even went as far as creating my own lyrics for that song they sang called Double Trouble. I only came up with the chorus, though. Might as well share it I guess...Let's just say I was a little bitter at the time. _

_ Screw Misty's bike_

_ Stupid bike, no one cares. _

_ Stupid bike, I'm so glad that you're wrecked. _

_ Screw Misty's bike_

_ I won't pay, it's not my fault. _

_ She can't blame me for something Pikachu-u did. _

_ I hope she never gets it back. _

_ So yeah...there you go. So, what's this metaphor accompanying the bike you ask? Well, it represents my own journey. It started out as a singular item, but quickly became broken into different parts. Through time, though, life tried to fix the bike, replacing the parts and bringing back the old ones when the new ones didn't work. But in the end, I ended up alone, just like how Nurse Joy had put the once discombobulated bike back into one thing. So yeah, I guess I still hated that bike." _

"Oh my god, Ash," Misty gawked from her seat. "I didn't know you could think on such deep levels!"

"That better be a compliment," Ash snapped at her.

"Oh, of course," she quickly nodded, sarcasm in her voice.

"Shhh," I hissed at them.

_ "When Brock told me that we would making these video diaries and than watching them when we were twenty, I was a bit skeptical. I mean, what were the chances that we would actually stay friends THAT long? Misty was going to be gone once she got her bike-although I was hoping she would just leave-and Brock would probably leave when she left. As time went on, though, I realized that maybe you guys were going to be there for a while. So, I decided to start video taping some stuff. But, unlike the happy, sentimental memories of friendship that I know you and Misty would cover in your videos; I decided to take a different approach. I wanted to capture the real Misty and Brock that only I knew about. The ones buried deep under the fiery temper and obsession with females." _

Aha! That's why he was always so secretive about his filming. Great... Knowing Ash, he was probably able to capture some pretty embarrassing things.

"_So, I would first like to start out with Misty, or Mysterious Misty as I liked to call her. A tomboy from Cerulean Cit with a temper that could rival Charizard's, she was who I met first on my journey. I don't need to go into how we met because if you don't know that, than you have been living under a rock. I'm guessing, Misty, that you probably want to know why you have been bestowed with the nickname of Mysterious Misty. Well, I'm glad I can answer it for you. I chose this name because I realized that over the years of traveling, I barely knew anything about you. Or at least, based on how long we had traveled, I didn't know much. You were always so secretive, sharing little information about yourself to us. If it hadn't been for my secret video taping, I would have never discovered the things I did."_

* * *

><p><em>"Hi, everyone!" a younger Ash's voice greeted us. "I have to be really quiet or Misty will kill me. Right now her, Brock and I are at my home in Pallet taking a break from traveling. Everyone else ran out to buy some things, leaving Misty and I. Correction, Misty thought she as the only one in the house. I had lied to her about going out, knowing that I could catch some good stuff if she thought nobody was there to watch her."<em>

_ Sure enough, an oblivious Misty was standing in front of a CD player that was sitting on an island in the center of the kitchen. Also on the island, was Pikachu and Togepi who were watching her intenetly. Instead of the normal yellow top and short combination she wore, she was wearing a blue camisole, yoga capris, and her now long red hair was tied into a ponytail. In her free hand, a pair of old dance shoes dangled on her fingers. She hopped on the counter opposite the island and pulled on her shoes before hopping off and pushing play. Once the music started, she began dancing through the kitchen. Unlike one might have thought, her song of choice wasn't a classical song. (Then again, it was Misty). Instead, the song she chose had a more modern feel to it. _

_As Ash videotaped her, she twirled, leaped and danced around the kitchen, completely lost in the moment, while Pikachu and Togepi twirled around on the island. You could almost see the emotion she put into it, as if she was hanging onto each word in the song, like they had a special meaning to her. It was quite remarkable actually. As the song came to an end, she collapsed into a heap on the kitchen floor, catching her breath. At this moment, Ash had turned off the camera before she could notice him. _

"_Yeah. I was shocked myself, too when I filmed this. I didn't know Misty could dance like that. It was just one of the things that made her Mysterious Misty. At this point, we had traveled together for a whole year and she had not once mentioned this to anyone. I don't know why she didn't because this was some impressive dancing. It would rival her sister's any day. From then on, I would sneak out at night sometimes just to watch her. Of course, I never said anything to her- I was afraid she might get mad at me. But, it always seemed to amaze me. I guess that explained why she had done so well in her sister's water ballet when she played the magical mermaid. Can you still dance like that now?" _

_ "I bet you would have never guessed that Misty actually may have enjoyed my company. I wouldn't have either based on the way she always treated me. But, as I said, she was Mysterious Misty, and I learned something new about her each time I secretly videotaped her" _

_ "Do you think he'd mind?" A younger Misty asked Pikachu who was sitting on the bed in front of her. With a nod of Pikachu's head, Misty picked up Ash's Pokemon League hat and placed in on her head before turning to face a nearby mirror. "How's it look Pikachu?" _

_ "Pika!" Pikachu cheered, jumping onto Misty's shoulder. _

_ "You're right. All I need is the clothes and gloves and I might be able to pull it off." She smiled at her reflection in the mirror, even striking the victory pose Ash did on occasion. Turning to the Pokemon on her shoulder she said, "You know, Pikachu? I heard mimicry is the highest form of flattery. He's actually not as bad as I thought he would be, that trainer of yours." _

_ "Pika?" _

_ "I know, right? Who knew I would ever say that? Can I tell you something, Pikachu? You have to promise not to tell Ash." Pikachu nodded, offering its pinky to make a promise. "I've been stealing some of Ash's money so that he wouldn't have enough to pay me back for a bike. He didn't notice, of course, because he never keeps track of how much he has. The thing is, I think I may actually like it here, and I don't think I want to leave." _

_ "Ha ha. You thought you were sneaky didn't you, Misty? I knew your secret, though. And I quickly took notice to the fact that through the months my money would randomly decrease in amount. So, what did you do with all that money, Misty? I bet you still have it." _

Pausing the video, Ash turned to Misty. "So, Misty, where's the money been all these years? I know you still have it. That money means to much to you to spend."

She looked at him, frowning a bit before she sighed. "I've actually spent some of it, so I don't have it all."

"What?" Ash gasped. "What did you spend it on?"

"Various things," she replied. When he didn't say anything, she continued on. "A trip to Hoenn, a trip to the league finals, supplies for a lure, and a winter hat."

"But those were all things-"

"-for you?" she finished for him. "Yeah. The money was spent to go see you or on you. The rest is locked in a vault, in a manila envelope labeled, LOST CAUSE."

Without another word, Ash slumped back into his spot on the couch and pressed play.

_ "As we all know from traveling with Misty, she prides herself on, well, being strong and independent. She doesn't do drama as she's told me many times-her sisters take care of that. She keeps everything hidden inside, barely ever showing any emotions other than the ones that range in the category of mad. Never once had I ever seen her talk to anyone about how she was feeling. Deep down I knew that she had feelings and emotions like any other human. It was just hers were all a giant brick wall that you had to fight to get over if you wanted to be her friend. And believe me, I fought to get over that wall many times, but I could never get over it like Pikachu could. I was always stuck somewhere in the middle getting closer and closer each day to being able to land on the other side. It wasn't until that faithful day when she had to leave that I guess I made it over that wall. Granted, I was cheating, but I still made it for those two minutes." _

At this, I could see Misty tense up out of the corner of my eye.

_"In case you're wondering, Misty, I heard what you said to Pikachu that night when you ran off to the park. I followed you without you knowing because I was worried. You hadn't been yourself all day, and I was surprised when you weren't excited to see the bike in one piece." _

_ Misty sat on a bench somewhere in a park, Pikachu next to her and Togepi on her lap, her bike abandoned on the grass in front of her. Upon closer inspection, one could see tears falling on her face. _

_ "Pi?" Pikachu asked, cocking its head to ask if she was okay. _

_ "Why do I have to leave, Pikachu?" she asked. "It's not fair. I finally have friends, a life that I love, and then my sisters have to go and take it away from me like usual." The little Pokemon hopped on her shoulder and started nuzzling her check to comfort her. "Three years and it all ends tomorrow. I never even got to tell him. Not hat it matters, though." _

_ "Pikapi?"_

_ "He doesn't care that I'm leaving. You saw his face. He told me, 'now you can get home fast.' He's glad to get rid of me. Three whole years and it meant nothing to him." _

_ "That's not true," Ash whispered to himself._

_ "Pika!" Pikachu cried, its ear perking up. _

_ "What is it?" she asked. "Is someone there?" _

_ The camera quickly turned off. _

_ "I have something to say to you about that comment, but I'll get back to it at the end. Now I want to introduce you guys to Benevolent Brock. (Big word, huh Misty? Aren't you proud of me?) Anyways, Benevolent Brock, who always put others before himself. From me to Dawn, he took care of us, fed us, and shared everything he knew about life, growing up and those random things in between. _

_ "Hey Misty! I'm going to head to that breeder's shop before it closes. There's supposed to be having a one-time info session where they have experts giving great tips. I'll be back soon," I told Misty. She slowly looked up, barely nodding in understanding. "What's the matter, Misty?" _

_ "I can't find Togepi," she replied. "I went to grab something out of my bag, and when I turned around he was gone. And Pikachu's with Ash, so I can't use him to help me find him. It's okay, though. I'll find him. I'm sure he couldn't have run too far. _

_ I watched as I glanced at the clock on the wall before turning back to Misty. "I've got some time if you want some help." _

_ "Really?" she asked, kind of shocked. "But what about your breeder thing? You really wanted to go to that." _

_ "I've got time, remember?" I reminded her. "Plus, Togepie's more important. I can always go tomorrow and buy a book. They'll be other info sessions." _

_ "Wow." _

_ "So, let's find Togepi " _

_ "Right," she nodded as she stood up and started looking under the couches and around the center. _

_ We did eventually find Togepi who had made its way to another trainer's room. I had missed the info session at the breeder store, but like I had told Misty, finding Togepi was much more important. _

* * *

><p><em> "I'm really nervous about tomorrow," May told me. "Drew's going to be there and I know he'll be looking for mistakes to point out to me afterwards He always gives my Pokemon a rose while he criticizes me." <em>

_ "I doubt he'll do that," I told her. _

_ "You don't know him," she replied. "He hates me. All he ever does is make fun of me." I just started laughing, causing her to throw me a look. "What's so funny, Brock?" _

_ "It's just that Ash used to do that to our old traveling companion Misty. He'd always tease her and criticize her, but deep down, I know he cared about her." _

_ "Well that's a funny way of showing you care," May commented. _

_ "Ha ha I know. But that's how boys that age show they care about you. They try to hide it by teasing you or making fun of you. Think about it, if Drew actually hated you, I'm pretty sure he wouldn't care how you did in a contest or give your Pokemon roses. Oh, and by the way, those are for you no matter what he might tell you." _

_ "Do you really think so?" she asked, blushing a bit. _

_ "I know so." _

_ "Wow. Thanks Brock. Now I feel nervous for a whole different reason," she laughed. "But I know I'll do well no matter what." _

* * *

><p><em> "Hello?" I said to someone on the phone. <em>

_ "Brock honey? This is your mom," my mom replied. _

_ "Hey, Mom. What's up?" _

_ "Your father's fallen ill, and-"_

_ "I'll get a train and be there tomorrow." _

_ "What?" _

_ "You want me to come home, right? To help you take care of everyone?" _

_ "Oh, honey. What about your travels? And your dream?" she asked, concern in her voice. _

_ "Don't worry. You need my help more. And just because I'm home doesn't mean I can't still pursue my dream. Plus, Ash is heading home soon anyway." _

_ My mom smiled at me before she said, "Thank you so much honey. You don't know how much I appreciate this." _

_ "No problem," I smiled at her. And it really wasn't a problem. My family needed me, and I had been gone from home too long. _

_ "So that's why I see Brock as the Benevolent Brock, the one who will help you out no matter what, sharing all he knows about life and its many obstacles. When he finally left, it was weird not having him around. He had been the only one left of our trio, and with him gone for good; I was once again at square one. I met a girl named Iris and a boy named Cilian, but they weren't you guys by a long shot. In fact, neither, Tracey, May, or Dawn could ever replace you guys" _

_ "I'm sure your probably wondering if I had created a code name for myself. I did. It was tough to come up with one because for once, I had to take the time to really examine my personality. I could have been biased and picked a name like, Awesome Ash, or picked one Misty would have probably came up with, like, Airhead Ash or Annoying Ash. But, after much deliberation and analysis of myself, I came up with just Ash. Like the substance I share my name with, I was what was left when our group was torn apart and destroyed. I scattered myself all over the different regions, and had a passion that burned brightly. And just like ash, I clouded myself from seeing things clearly. From seeing what was in front of me the entire time. And when all that ash had cleared up, it was too late. But at the same time, from ashes come new beginnings. I had clouded your lives and kept you from pursuing your dreams. On that day when for once in my life I finally felt alone, a new chapter in my life began. One without you two by my side, and one where I could watch my friends excel in what they loved. Granted Brock came back, but it still wasn't the same. Oh, and for the record, Misty. Those three years we traveled together did mean a lot to me." _

_ "Because I had always loved code names as a kid, I created a name for our little trio. Taking the first letters of our names, I created the name of BAM. You know? That sound that is made when you're hit with a force so great it knocks you down. Well, that's how I see us: A group you didn't want to mess with that always left an impact wherever they went, weather it be on a person we helped or a city we had left destroyed in our path to fight the forces of evil. A group who never did anything on a small scale from the arguments we had to the amount of food that was eaten. We were composed of Brock, the super caretaker and hopeless romantic who, when it mattered most, would do anything for the ones he loved; Misty, the temperamental, romance loving red head who was as unpredictable and mysterious as the ocean she loved; And me, the boy who never really had friends before this, and who had started his journey all by himself with a Pokemon that hated him. The one who always looked for a challenge, throwing us into life-threatening situations. Together we fought off Team Rocket, saved the world, and grew into a little family. And, as I once heard Misty tell Togepi, and I once told Max, 'Sometimes friends have to go away, but a part of them always stays with you.' I still have the handkerchief and lunch box you two gave me when you left, and I've had them ever since." _

_ "So, here I sit with a list of question in front of me that I have to answer. It's supposed to be for our video diaries when we watch them again. I'm actually kind of curious about what Misty and Brock will say. Especially Misty, since I don't really know many personal things about her. Pikachu told me that he wants to answer some of the questions, to. So, when he answers one, I'll tell you what he said." _

_Question 1: What's your dream career?_

" _Well, no offense guys, but if you don't know what I want to be then you have been living under a rock. I want to be the greatest Pokemon Master. Pikachu said he wants to become a ketchup taste tester. Sigh... he would. Next question." _

_Question 2: What's your favorite memory?_

"_My favorite memory would have to be when we went on this motion simulated ride where they made it seem like you were the size of a Caterpie. I don't remember how, but Brock and I somehow tricked Misty into coming with us. I think we told her it was supposed to be like you were a Seel in the ocean. When the giant Weedle appeared on the screen, she started screaming, hiding her head in my arm. I was laughing so hard because it was beyond hilarious. That, of course, only made her angrier. The best part, though, was, once you got off, the exit was built like you were in a patch of grass surrounded by giant statutes of bug Pokemon. Although it had been hilarious to watch her scream and cower in fear at fake Pokemon, she about ripped my arm off when she dragged me through the exit at a full sprint. Pikachu's favorite memory was when Dexter called me stupid. Oh, yeah. I remember that...thanks Pikachu."  
>Question 3: What would you say your role in the group is? <em>

"_The chosen one, of course! Honestly, though? I think my role is the leader because I'm the one who always gets us into the situations we are in, and wherever I need to be, we go. Pikachu answered that he was the peacekeeper amongst the Pokemon." _

_Question 4: Who's your crush? (And yes, Brock, you only can pick one)_

"_My-my crush? Why did we need to have a question like that? I don't see why this is important, or why it will matter when I'm older. Uh...uh...you don't really need to know this do you?"_

"_Pikachupi!" _

"_Stop Pikachu! I don't like her that way," Ash turned an yelled at Pikachu. When he turned back to face the camera, though, his face was bright red. _

"_Pika chu pi. Pi chu pika." _

"_No! You can't tell her that! Fine! I'll tell you guys, all right?" He paused, looking down at his lap. "All right. I really like Misty. I don't know why, though. I just do." _

_Question 5: Plan on having a family? If so, what do you think they'll be like? _

"_I don't know. Aren't I too young to think about that? I'm sure my mom would love for me to get married and have kids one day, but that won't be for a long time. As Misty has reminded me multiple times, I'd be lucky to find someone who would willingly put up with me. But, hadn't she done that exact thing? I mean, I know she's been stealing money so I don't have enough to pay her back, and I heard her tell Pikachu that she didn't want to leave. But who knows? Oh, why I'm talking about that, Misty, what did you mean when you said, 'you and I will be married someday?' Did you mean that we each would be married, or that we would be married to each other? Pikachu had no answer for this question." _

_Question 6: What is the one thing that's always bothered you?_

"_The one thing that's always bothered me is Gary Oak. Since I was a kid he had made it his goal to tease me and shoot down everything I had accomplished. He always got me in trouble, beat me up, and beat me in pretty much everything. It's just no fair. And, go figure, nobody ever believed me. Noooo. Not innocent Gary. Innocent Gary my-"_

"_Pika!"_

"_Oh, sorry, Pikachu. Pikachu's always been bothered by Team Rocket. I guess that's understandable." _

_Question 7: Whom would you consider your best friend?_

"_I've always considered you both my best friends. I know I'm probably only supposed to pick one, but I can't choose. You're both great and equally impacting on my life. So, I don't care what you say. You're both my best friends. Pikachu said that his best friend is Misty." Realizing Pikachu's answer, Ash quickly snapped his head toward the Pokemon. "You traitor. I thought you and I were best friends? We've been together since day one. What does Misty have that I don't?" _

"_Pikachu chu pi," Pikachu replied. _

"_He says Misty's a safer person to hang around. Whatever THAT means." _

_Question 8: What's one regret you have in life? _

"_Teaching Jigglypuff how to sing again. What was I thinking? Worst. Decision. Ever. Pikachu says his one regret is that he failed to get his Pikpi and Pikachupi together. Wait, what? Why I ought to..." _

_Question 9: If you only had 24 hours to live, what would you do? (Ash, you ARE NOT going to die in 24 hours, so stop freaking out you dense idiot.)_

"_Geez, Misty. Please. I don't actually think I'm going to die. If I had 24 hours left to live, I would buy Misty a new bike, spend two hours by myself so that I could reflect on my life, and then spend the rest of the day eating gross amounts of food. At that point, it doesn't really matter if I clog my arteries with greasy and fat filled hamburgers. Yum. No comment from Pikachu." _

_Question 10: What's one thing you've always wanted to know? _

_ "Do people change when they get kissed?" _

_ "Pi Pikachupi." _

_ "Ask Misty? What? I'm not going to ask her. Anyways, she told me last time that's we'll just have to find out for ourselves, although, I don't really know what that meant. It was a bit ambiguous. Pikachu wants to know why I always pull out my Pokedex and say, 'what's that?' even when the Pokemon says its name. For the record Pikachu, it's so I can enter them in my Pokedex and learn more about them. You happy? " _

_ "Pi." _

_ "Well, I guess that's all ten questions, Pikachu. Any last words?" _

_ "PIIIIIIIIIII PIKA CHU!" _

_ "Pikachu says he loves you and will miss you. I will, too.. We'll try to visit when we can. Keep in touch. Goodbye for now." _

_ "So there you go guys. There's my video diary of our travels together. Before I end it here, I wanted to throw in some funny clips-one for each of you-that I caught on tape. Enjoy."_

_ As the T.V. went from black to Ash's clip, there was some happy sounding music that was playing while the video showed a random girl walking down the path. As usual, I went into instant girl mode. As the girl got closer, the once happy sounding music turned into battle sounding music._

_ "Cute Girl appears!"_

"_Hello there," the girl greeted us, throwing in a big smile. _

"_Cute Girl used charm. It's super effective," Ash's voice commented._

_ "Why hello there!" I heard myself say. "Aren't you just the most beautiful girl I've ever seen." _

_ "Brock is infatuated with Cute Girl. Brock used Charm." The girl I was hitting on just rolled her eyes. "Charm does not affect Cute Girl." _

_ "Brock!" Misty yelled at me as she walked over in my direction. _

_ "Woah! Misty appeared. It looks like this is a tag battle," Ash announced. Just then, instead of pulling him away like she normally did, Misty pulled out her mallet and whacked Brock in the head. "Misty used mallet. It's super effective. Brock has fainted."  
><em>

* * *

><p><em>"Hi! This is May! Ash, I stole your camera so I could use it to capture this lovely moment." The clip froze. <em>

"That wasn't what I put in there," Ash blurted. He suddenly whipped his head around to face Pikachu. "What did you do Pikachu?"

"Ooo," Misty teased. "I want to see this now. What'd you do Ashy?"

"Nothing. We're done. I'm not pushing play."

"Ha ha," she laughed. "Like that's going to happen. We're watching this." She reached out for the remote, but Ash quickly raised it above his head so she couldn't get it. Over time, he had gained some height on her. Misty wasn't going to give up, though, and I too wanted to see this clip. By the time I had stood up to go help Misty, Ash and her were on the floor in a stand off. Walking over to Ash, I snatched the remote and tossed it over to Misty who pushed play, a big grin on her face. "I always win."

_"Just so you know, I woke up in the middle of the night to find this," May explained as she turned the camera around to show the campsite. What she focused on, though, were a red and blue sleeping bag that were placed next to each other. Ash, who was in the blue sleeping bag, was scooted as far as he could to the end closes to the red sleeping bag, which Misty was asleep in. His arm was tossed haphazardly over Misty's waist. "What do you think Brock? I'd say that's about 0 inches there between those sleeping bags. And he says he doesn't like her. Please." She shut off the camera after she had said that. _

* * *

><p><strong>One more chapter left. It will include their reactions and what they did for the rest of the time they had together.<strong>_  
><em>


	5. The Final Hours

**It took me a while to write this one, so I hope I did a good job. Thanks to all who have reviewed and stuck with me.**

As Ash's video came to a close, the room around me went silent. I myself will admit that I had not been expecting what Ash had put in his video. It was very unlike him to ever say heartwarming stuff like that or talk about how much his friends meant to him. Don't get me wrong, I always knew Ash appreciated his friends. He just was never one to say it like that. It was different, but a good kind of different.

Since we had finally finished watching all the DVDs, I knew that my friends on the couch next to me would not waste time in expressing how they feel about certain clips or things said. Turning to see them sitting in silence, I started the mental countdown in my head. You know, the one where you can count down to three and you know, the minute you hit zero, all will break loose? That's the one I was counting down to. The one where, when I hit zero, everything Ash and Misty had been holding back would bubble to the surface.

Three. I looked at Misty who started at her lap, looking slightly dejected, as her hands balled into fists on her lap. I couldn't tell if she had balled up her fists because she was angry, or because she was trying to hold back a strong emotion she was feeling right then and there. She even had her head slightly tilted away from Ash and I. Two. I flicked my eyes over to Ash who looked at Misty with a face that could only be concern. I watched him raise his arm before letting his hand hover just above Misty's shoulder, hesitating as he debated weather or not he should rest it there to comfort her. In the end, though, he just placed it back at his side and turned away, not sure of how to confront her. One. Pikachu had moved from his spot next to Ash and over to Misty's shoulder where, having more courage than Ash, he nuzzled her cheek in a comforting way. Zero. Nothing. Not a word or shout or accusation thrown.

Normally one wouldn't be so concerned with silence falling upon a group of people, but these weren't just any two people; it was Ash and Misty. Two people who thrived on being surrounded by noise and never let silence fall between them. I had always thought that silence between Ash and Misty would be something I would love, but as I quickly learned now, it was actually uncomfortable.

"Guys?" I asked them, breaking the silence myself. "Is everything okay?"

Ash turned to look at me, shrugging his shoulders, as if to say he didn't know. I guess he was just as confused and unnerved by the silence as I was.

Finally gaining the courage-probably because of Pikachu-Ash rested his hand on Misty's shoulder and squeezed it gently. "Mist?" he called, using a name I myself hadn't heard said in over five years. I think Misty was just as surprised to hear that name because she lifted her head a bit and unclenched her fists. She still didn't turn to face him, though. The look on Ash's face was one of pleading as he said, "Please say something."

Silence.

Ash exhaled a breath as he let his hand slide down her arm and back into his lap. "I really liked your video Mist," he started to tell her. "It was very...uh...very eye-opening. I learned a lot of things I never knew before. I guess even to this day, you're still Mysterious Misty. " He paused, waiting to see if she reacted to anything he said. "I'm glad you decided not to stay with Rudy. If you did...well...Who would've saved me later on?"

"I always have to save you, idiot," Misty muttered.

"Yeah. You always did, didn't you? Since day one," Ash replied, but it sounded more as if he was telling himself this. "I guess Rudy was right."

"Huh?" This time Misty turned around, her interest peaked by his statement.

"Rudy was right," he repeated. "I really was a lucky guy after all. You know? To have you around."

"I-" she stuttered over her words. In the end, though, she gave up, smiling instead. "Thanks, Ash. That's sweet."

I waited a few seconds to see if they would keep talking, but hearing nothing for a while, I jumped right into the next thing. "You guys hungry?"

"I'm always hungry," Ash replied. Misty just rolled her eyes at him. Even at the age of twenty, Ash had the appetite of a Snorlax.

"All right," I said standing up. "I'll go fix us a quick dinner, and then we can head outside. Try not to kill each other while I'm gone."

As part of our day together, we had decided that, for old time's sake, we would camp out in Ash's backyard. Although it wasn't the forest, it was still pretty much the same thing. I had already cooked a meal before I came here, but they didn't know that. After setting the timer for the food I was pretending to cook, I tiptoed over to the door to the family room. As I put my ear to the door, I could hear Ash and Misty talking to each other.

"Interesting song," I heard Misty tell Ash. "I didn't know that's how you really felt about my bike."

"No offense, Misty," I heard him reply, "but I've always hated that bike."

"Yeah. So have I," she sighed.

There was a momentary pause in their conversation before Ash started talking again.

"I've really missed you, Mist."

"Yeah?" She sounded a bit surprised. "I've missed you, too."

"I'm surprised I'm still alive, considering you weren't there to save me."

"I don't want to know," she groaned. Ash just laughed a bit. The last thing Misty probably wanted to hear was Ash's stories of how he cheated death numerous times again. "You really haven't changed, have you?"

"Me?" Ash laughed. "Of course not."

"Good."

"Huh?"

"I'm glad you haven't changed," Misty clarified. "I'm glad all that fame hasn't gone to your head. I would hate to lose my best friend. I've always liked Ash just the way he is so, don't go changing him on me.

"I wouldn't dream of it."

Just then the timer went off, much to my dismay. Man. I was hoping for a confession. Maybe later. I wasn't going to let them leave here without getting together. I had a bet going with a bunch of people that I would be able to get them together by the end of this, and I didn't plan on losing. As I went to grab the food, I tried to think of ways to get them together. Hmm. Maybe I could use the cooler of water balloons I had brought. Ash's hormones would go crazy if Misty got hit with a few water balloons.

"That was really great, Brock," Misty complimented me. "I've really missed your cooking. God knows I can't cook."

"Oh. We know," Ash assured her. "I'm pretty sure I came closer to dying by eating your food than any other time."

Grabbing a water balloon, Misty hurled it at Ash, hitting him square in the face. Not one to let Misty win, Ash grabbed his own water balloon. Next thing I knew, Misty and Ash were throwing water balloons at each other like two-year olds. When I tried to intervene, they ganged up on me, each of them throwing one in my face. Before I knew it, we were all running around the yard, having a fight with water balloons. And even though we were twenty, none of us seemed to care. Plus, this was all part of my plan.

As Misty ran back to the cooler to grab another balloon, I saw Ash run up behind her and wrap an arm around her waist, preventing her from getting closer to the cooler. "Get her, Brock!" he yelled. Before I could reach them, though, Ash used his free arm to burst open a balloon over Misty's head, soaking her in the process. Oddly enough, though, he didn't let go after, instead wrapping the arm he was just using around her waist.

"Ash Ketchum!" an infuriated Misty yelled. Her legs flailed wildly as she tried to wriggle out of Ash's grasp. Her efforts were futile, though, as Ash was stronger than her.

By now I had reached them, but instead of getting Misty like Ash had requested, I grabbed another balloon out of the cooler and got them both at the same time. It was just too tempting. While Ash pretended to look mad, Misty shot daggers at me.

"Pikachu!" Sure enough, at the sound of his name, Pikachu came running out from the chair he was hiding under and over to Misty. "Help me."

At her request, Pikachu climbed onto Ash's shoulder and nudged his neck, causing him to become more distracted by the ticklish feeling Pikachu had caused. Once Ash's arms were out of the way, Misty escaped and started to run away while Ash tried to trap her again. In the process, though, the two of them somehow got their feet tangled, falling onto the grass, as Pikachu abandoned the sinking Ash. And, just because I could, before they were able to get up, I dumped the remaining water in the cooler on them.

While we sat around the fire trying to dry off, the sun finally set, making it feel a lot colder than it was before. I kind of regretted having dumped the water on Misty as I watched her shiver in her wet tank top and shorts across form me. Next to her Ash threw worried glances her way every now and then. He stood up and went back inside the house without a word.

"I'm sorry Misty," I apologized to her, even though I knew it would be no use.

"Oh, so NOW you're sorry," she replied, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "You should have thought of that earlier. You know? Before you dumped a water balloon on Ash and I and then the cooler of water?"

"You know you loved it," I smirked.

"What?"

"Ash's arms around you like that." I just smirked some more as her face became very flustered looking. "You had your opportunity to break free when he used one arm, but I bet you were too love struck to react."

"I-I-That's not true," she retorted. "I fought to get out in case you didn't notice."

"You didn't fight THAT hard," I told her. "You of all people have a better chance of beating up Ash. So you better tell him tonight."

" Tell him what?" she asked.

"Your undying love for him, of course."

"You love someone, Mist?" Ash asked, having returned from wherever he had gone. In his hand he had an old shirt and his red hoodie he had on earlier. Walking over to Misty he handed her the clothes. "Here, I thought you want might want these."

"Oh," she replied, sounding a bit surprised by the kind gesture. Standing up she grabbed the clothes. "Thanks Ash. I'm going to go change. I'll be back."

"You don't need to go inside. You can just change here," I told her. "I'm sure Ash wouldn't mind a bit."

"You pervert!" she screeched before storming into the house, cursing under he breath. Ash on the other hand had turned as red as a tomato.

"So when are you going to tell her?" I asked him out of the blue. Well, it wasn't really that out of the blue.

"Tell her what?" he asked, giving me a puzzled look.

"That you're in love with her."

"I don't know. Maybe later tonight," he shrugged. Now who's the immature one, Misty? At least Ash could admit he was in love with her.

"It better be. This is probably your last shot."

He just nodded at me, not saying another word. Neither of us spoke while we waited for Misty to return. When she did, Ash turned into a gaping Magikarp. She had on his red hoodie and her pajama shorts. She had brushed her hair, too, pulling it back into a ponytail.

"I'm going to head to bed," she announced.

"What?" Ash asked. "But Misty's its only 9:30."

"I have to wake up at 6 so I can make it to the gym in time."

"You're leaving that earlier?" Ash questioned her, sadness very evident in his voice. "Can't your sisters watch the gym for another day?"

"No," she stated. "Now let me go to bed. I need my beauty sleep."

I would have shouted something at Misty, but I didn't feel it was my place to say anything. Couldn't she see that Ash wanted to spend more time with her? I knew she also wanted that extra time. Since Misty had gone to bed as well, Ash decided to turn in for the night, leaving me all by myself. Gee...thanks guys. What great friends you two are. Figuring it wouldn't be any fun staying up alone, I came to the conclusion that our night was over and went to bed.

_Misty's POV_

Sometime in the middle of the night, I felt someone shaking me in my sleep as they called my name. When I opened my eyes, I saw Ash's face directly in front of mine, causing my heart to leap in fright.

"What the heck," I shouted, but he quickly silence me with a, "shh", as he covered my mouth with his hand.

Removing his hand once he was sure I was done shouting, he started whispering. "Come with me," he told me, grabbing my hand as he pulled me up. "Try not to wake Brock up, though."

Getting out my sleeping bag, I stood up and followed him as he led me through the yard and into the house. We walked through the family room and into the kitchen, where he finally let go of my hand to turn on the light. Now that the lights were on, I could finally get a good look at him and where we were. He had changed out of his drenched khaki shorts and was now wearing a different pair and a plain, lime green shirt. He had even put on his tan hat-which was turned backwards, of course. I would be kidding myself if I didn't think he looked really hot.

"What are we doing?" I hissed.

"You'll see," he smiled before walking over to a CD player that was sitting on the counter, and pushed play.

It took me a few seconds, but it suddenly hit me that the song he was playing was the one I had been dancing to when he secretly videotaped me all those years ago.

"Dance with me," he stated as he started sliding across the kitchen floor in his socks, trying to imitate the twirls and poses I had done. He looked really uncoordinated as he failed immensely at dancing. It was if the twenty year old he was a few minutes ago had become a five year old. I couldn't help but laugh at him as he slid forward, trying to spin around, and instead running into the kitchen counter. Now, he was down right adorable. Darn him. "Clearly, you need to teach me a few things."

"Obviously," I laughed before walking over to him.

Standing next to him, I showed him how to position his hands so that he could spin around without running into things. Next I taught him a few of the moves I had used from before, him trying to mimic me each time I taught him something. He was actually patient as I taught him how to dance without killing himself or destroying everything in his path. After a while, I pushed play on the CD player and started dancing around the kitchen with him. Even though I had spent the time to teach him all those different dance moves, he decided to do his own thing. Either he just was totally uncoordinated, or it was his goal to crash into me as much as he could. I think most of my dancing was spent avoiding getting hit by him. Although this wasn't what I had in mind after all that work, it was still really fun. When the song was over, we collapsed on the floor-or slipped in fell in Ash's case- in hysteric laughter. It had been a while since I had laughed like this-especially with him.

Glancing at the clock above the microwave, I gasped and shot up from the floor. "Ash! It's almost midnight!"

"So?" he asked from his spot on the floor.

Turning around, I placed my hands on my hips as I stared down at him. "I have to wake up in six hours," I groaned. "I told you I needed to sleep."

"Well, I wanted to spend time with you." It was a simple phrase, but it still meant a lot to me. If I had more time, trust me, I would have laid on that kitchen floor with him laughing until the sun rose. But, I didn't have the time like I used to. I had responsibilities I had to attend to. Pretending I had ignored him, I just glared some more. "Fine," he grumbled as he got up off the floor.

He flicked the light off in the kitchen when we walked out, surrounding us in darkness. I stopped somewhere in the family room, waiting for my eyes to get adjusted to the dark. Ash on the other hand, kept walking ahead of me, having no idea that I had stopped. I saw what I thought was him stopping in front of the screen door, finally realizing I was no longer right behind him. Doubling back, I watched in horror as he tripped over something on the floor-probably air knowing him-and toppled into me, sending us backward and onto the floor. I closed my eyes, bracing for the blow I felt as my back hit the floor and a much heavier Ash fall on me.

He quickly scrambled off of me, allowing the air to return to my lungs. "Where's your hand?" I heard him ask as he rested his hand on my nose.

"Well, that's my nose," I replied, moving my own hand up to grab his.

"Oh, sorry," he apologized, grabbing my hand and pulling me up. "I'm sorry I fell on you like that."

"It's fine," I told him as I stood up and brushed myself off. _Just pretend nothing happened_, I thought to myself.

I didn't see if he nodded or moved out of my way, so I just had to rely on my eyes, which, I might add, had yet to adjust to the dark. Closing them before had kind of ruined that process for me. Sticking my hands in front me, I walked toward the screen door that was luckily illuminated by the moonlight outside. As my luck would have it, I didn't get very far as my hands collided with Ash's face.

"Mifty, thafs my mouf," I heard him mumble. I could barely understand him, though.

"What?" I whispered.

I felt his hand wrap around my wrist as he pulled it away from his face. "I said that was my mouth."

"Oh."

Wow did I feel dumb. No wonder I couldn't understand him; I was covering his mouth. Today was just going to be one of those days, wasn't? Maybe, the world was trying to tell me something, but I was too tired to try and figure it out.

"I want to show you something," he suddenly announced. His hand still wrapped around my wrist, he pulled me in the opposite direction of the screen door-at least I thought it was.

"Hey! Where are we going?" I yelled at him. "I need to sleep Ash!"

"You don't need sleep, Misty. You're already beautiful."

What had he just said? Did Ash Ketchum of all people just call me beautiful? I must be dreaming. I knew I wasn't, though, as I was suddenly jerked back to reality when Ash pulled me through the front door of his house and onto the porch. Letting go of my wrist, he walked over to the porch swing and sat down, patting the empty spot next to him.

"Ash," I groaned. "I need to sleep."

"Please," he pleaded with me. "I probably won't get to see you for a while after this."

He did have a point. It had been hard enough planning this day with all of our busy schedules. I knew I need to sleep, but maybe, a few minutes wouldn't kill me.

"Fine," I huffed, sitting down next to him.

The minute I sat down, he started moving forwards and backwards, the swing following his motion. As I looked up into the sky, I saw the millions of stars scattered all around. This had always been why I loved traveling and coming to Pallet Town. In Cerulean, I could barely see the stars unless I went all the way to the cape, but that was always filled with couples. Since I had nobody to be couple with, I typically avoided the place all together.

"They're amazing out here," I said to nobody in particular.

Ash simply nodded in agreement as he slumped back into the swing, his feet scraping against the concrete below. As weird as it sounded, the sound of his feet scrapping was kind of soothing. In the process of slumping into the seat, his hand had slid over mine. I didn't move it, though.

"Hey, Misty? Can I ask you something?" The swing swung forward. _Scrape._

"Yeah." _Scrape. _It swung backward.

"About your answer to the question to who you have a crush on..." His voiced died down before he could finish his question. _Scrape._ I had a small feeling I knew what he was going to ask, and just the thought of it made my heart speed up. "Has that...has that changed?"

Thank goodness it was still pretty dark because I'm pretty sure my face turned about nine shades of red. "Why do you ask?" _Scrape._

"I ask because I still like you. I missed you so much when you left, and I thought about you everyday. It always meant a lot to me when you came and visited or came to watch me in those tournaments." He took a breathe before continuing on. "Seeing you today, and how much you had changed and how great it felt to have things back the way they were, only reminded me of how much I missed you. That's why I wanted to spend time with you tonight. I may not see you for a while, so I wanted to make today count."

"I know what you mean," I sighed, resting my chin on the palms of my hands.

"God, Misty, I could have laid on that floor all night just laughing like that."

"Me, too." Without meaning to, I rested my head on his shoulder and closed my eyes for a second before staring back at the stars again. "Do you ever wish we could go back to being kids again? You know? Arguing, getting lost, a still broken bike, crazy adventures?"

"Every day, Mist" he sighed. "Every day."

What I would pay to be able to go back before I had to leave and change everything. If I knew how things would turn out, I would have never left, no matter what my sisters said. I would have destroyed my bike on the spot and used it as an excuse not to be able to go back home. I would have given him his money back and said he could buy me a bike later. I would have done a lot of things differently. But, that was in the past and I could no longer control those things. I could only control the present. Right here. Sitting on this swing with him.

"We can't worry about that, though," I told him. "We can only control the present. The right now: you and me here on this swing, an unchanged answer from seven years ago and a question that needs answering."

"A question that needs answering?" he asked, looking away from the stars to throw me a puzzled look.

Taking a big breath, I tried to compose myself even though my heart was racing. "You wanted to know if people changed when they got kissed, right?"

He grinned from ear to ear before squeezing my hand and closing the distance between us. All I could think as I sat there kissing him was how little I cared about sleep right now. For once, my reality was ten times better than my dreams.

_Later that Morning (Brock's POV)_

Yawning as I stretched my arms, I looked around and took in my surroundings. What I didn't expect were the two empty sleeping bags across from me. It was already 7:30 so I would have assumed that Misty had left, but why would she have left her sleeping bag and bag here? And, why was the one person who enjoyed sleeping in as much as he enjoyed food suddenly missing as well? As I took a closer look, I noticed that Pikachu was still snoozing between the empty bags. Something was up.

Standing up, I walked into the house to see if maybe they had randomly gotten up earlier than me. When I entered the house, though, I didn't hear any noises from anywhere I the house. As I went to inspect the kitchen, I didn't find any note saying they had left either. While I stood in the kitchen trying to figure out where they might have gone, I heard the creaking of the porch swing as it swung in the wind. Normally the swing never made noise...unless there was some sort of weight on it. Aha!

Rushing out onto the porch, I found Ash and Misty fast asleep on the swing, Misty using Ash as a pillow. Oh. My. God. They were holding hands, too. SOMETHING had happened while I was sleeping. Rushing back into the house, I grabbed my video camera and started recording.

"All right you doubters, here's your proof that Brock the love master has done the impossible." I zoomed in on their faces, making sure to capture the hands. "As you can see, something clearly happened last night. Aww. Don't they just look so peaceful together? Let's wake them up and get to the bottom of this."

Setting the kitchen timer between them, I set it for one minute before rushing off somewhere I could secretly spy on them without them knowing. Hey, if Ash could do it, so could I.

_BRIIIIIIIIIINNNNNGGG!_

"AHH!" Misty shouted, shooting her head up, almost falling off the swing.

An unfazed Ash woke up next to her, rubbing the tiredness out of his eyes. "Morning Misty," he yawned, stretching his arms and craning his neck.

"What time is it?" she shouted at him, frantically searching around for something that would tell her the time.

"I don't know. Probably around seven."

"Seven!" she screeched. "I was supposed to leave here an hour ago! I'm late! My sisters are going to kill me." She was pacing wildly around the swing, but not actually going anywhere away from it. Suspicious...

"Misty," Ash called, grabbing her arm. "Calm down. It's okay."

"It's not o-"

He cut her off by kissing her. Holy freaking cow. Ash just kissed Misty. Ash and Misty just kissed. I stood there gaping at them, the camera slipping off my hand and onto the floor with a loud crash. They both jumped away from each other and turned toward the house where I was standing there like an idiot.

"What happened?" was all I could muster.

"You're dreaming, Brock. This is all a dream," Misty told me.

"Oh, okay," I answered rather dumbly. After I had turned away to go back to bed, though, it hit me. "Hey! I'm not dreaming!"

I turned back to yell at them for tricking me, but they were a little bit preoccupied with kissing each other to even notice me. As freaked out as I was by the whole thing, I silently picked up the camera and started recording again. I needed proof, and this was the only way I could get it. After ten seconds of recording, I think I had enough, so I closed the camera and walked away to give them some privacy. I couldn't wait to e-mail this to everyone. And Ms. Ketchum said I couldn't do it.


End file.
